J-E residents call for April vote to let public’s voice be heard

155 residents have petitioned the Jordan-Elbridge Board of Education to hold a special meeting April 26 that would allow residents to vote on four propositions, among them a vote of “no confidence.”

“We’re hoping that these four propositions will be put on the ballot so the public can vote one way or the other … we want the public to voice their opinion,” said Fred Weisskopf, who, along with other members of the JE District Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility, submitted the petition to the district this morning.

Weisskopf, a trustee for the village of Elbridge, said he helped file the petition “as a taxpayer and a resident of the town and the village, not as a trustee.”

Weisskopf resigned from a part-time clerk position at J-E in September, citing uncomfortable work conditions and his allegiance to suspended Assistant Superintendent of Business and Finance William Hamilton and fired district Treasurer Anthony Scro.

The propositions reads as follows:

Proposition 1: No Confidence. As a resident of the Jordan-Elbridge Central School District, I do not consider the current board of education to be capable of making competent decisions on behalf of the district. I have no confidence in the 2010-11 board of education. Yes/No.

Proposition 2: Appointment of the next superintendent of schools. As a resident of the Jordan-Elbridge Central School District, I do not believe that the current board of education is capable of selecting the district’s next superintendent of schools in a manner that is in the best interest of the district. I want the 2010-11 board of education to be prohibited from appointing and/or hiring the district’s next superintendent of schools or interim superintendent of schools. Yes/No.

Proposition 3: Retract decision to appeal decision in Scro vs. BOE. As a resident of the Jordan-Elbridge Central School District, I want the 2010-11 board of education to immediately retract its Feb. 2 resolution to appeal the decision made by state Supreme Court Justice Donald Greenwood in the case of Scro vs. BOE. Yes/No.

Proposition 4: Retract decision to appeal decision in Zehner vs. BOE. As a resident of the Jordan-Elbridge Central School District, I want the 2010-11 board of education to immediately retract its Feb. 2 resolution to appeal the decision made by state Supreme Court Justice Donald Greenwood in the case of Zehner vs. BOE. Yes/No.

Interim Superintendent Lawrence Zacher declined to comment when asked this afternoon how the district plans to respond. Board President Mary Alley did not respond to an e-mail requesting comment.

Weisskopf said the board must respond to the petition within 20 days of its filing.

The petition was signed by 155 people – about 100 more than required by the last BOE election’s voter turnout. Weiskopff said the group of citizens obtained even more signatures that are not on the filed petition but will be shown to Zacher, “just to show him that there are more people thinking about this.”

The JE District Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility also placed an ad in this week’s Port Byron Shopping Guide, out today, called “The Unfortunate Fiscal Reality of the Jordan-Elbridge School District.”

“Regardless of how you might feel about the controversial issues of ongoing staff and policy changes, there is one aspect of the current crisis that should be of equal concern to all residents in the JE district- how it impacts us financially,” the ad reads.

The ad spells out unbudgeted expenses incurred or committed to by the district, including “at least $500,000 for interim principals, new non-instructional positions and high wage increases for select employees, all in addition to wages and benefits being paid to either suspended and or reassigned employees.”